Photo album with built-in audio recorder

Abstract

A photo album includes front and rear covers, a volume of pages bound between the covers, each page for holding at least one photograph, and an audio recorder for recording an audio message and playing back a recorded message. The recorder includes an electronic control circuit mounted on a printed circuit board affixed to one of the covers, and includes a memory device for storing recorded messages. The recorder includes a microphone and a speaker connected to the control circuit, the microphone and speaker inputting and outputting a message respectively, and at least one electrical switch supported by each separate page. The switch is associated with at least one photograph held by the same page and is connected to the control circuit for triggering the audio recorder to record or play back a message associated with the at least one photograph.

What is claimed is:  
     
       1. A photo album comprising 
       front and rear covers,  
       a plurality of pages, bound between the front and rear covers, each page comprising a pocket having an opening along an edge through which a photograph is insertable into the pocket, the pocket including a double-walled edge portion, and  
       an audio recorder for recording an audio message and playing back a recorded message, the recorder comprising  
       an electronic control circuit mounted on a printed circuit board affixed to one of the front and rear covers, the electronic control circuit including a memory device for storing recorded messages,  
       a microphone and a speaker connected to the electronic control circuit, the microphone and speaker for inputting and outputting a message, respectively, and  
       respective electrical switches encased in the doubled walled edge portion of the pocket of a corresponding page and moving with the page, each switch being associated with at least one photograph held by the corresponding page and connected to the electronic control circuit for triggering the audio recorder to record in a recording mode and play back in a playback mode a message associated with the at least one photograph in the pocket, each electrical switch being substantially flat and comprising at least one fixed contact, a movable contact, and an actuating member resiliently biased and actuable to move the movable contact into contact with the fixed contact momentarily.  
     
     
       2. The photo album as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein each page has opposite sides for holding at least one photograph for display on each opposite side, on which side the electrical switch associated with the at least one photograph displayed is supported. 
     
     
       3. The photo album as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein the electrical switches on opposite sides of each page are offset in position and do not overlap with each other. 
     
     
       4. The photo album as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein each page has upper and lower edges and supports at least one electrical switch adjacent one of the upper and lower edges. 
     
     
       5. The photo album as claimed in  claim 4 , wherein each page has opposite sides for holding at least one photograph for display on each opposite side, on which side the electrical switch associated with the at least one photograph displayed on the same side is supported, electrical switches on opposite sides being supported adjacent the upper and lower edges, respectively. 
     
     
       6. The photo album as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the double-walled edge portion extends across a width of the page and encases co-extensively a strip to which the corresponding electrical switch is attached and thereby located in position. 
     
     
       7. The photo album as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the audio recorder includes an additional electrical switch connected to the electronic control circuit and affixed to one of the front and rear covers for switching the audio recorder from the playback mode to the recording mode. 
     
     
       8. The photo album as claimed in  claim 7 , wherein the additional electrical switch maintains the recording mode only as long as the additional switch is actuated. 
     
     
       9. The photo album as claimed in  claim 1 , including a substantially flat cabinet mounted on an inner surface of one of the front and rear covers and in which the printed circuit board is located. 
     
     
       10. The photo album as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the cabinet has an edge and includes a binder extending along the edge and binding the pages together.